Prerequisites #

• Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) Environment:
  • An active Oracle Cloud Infrastructure account.
  • Access to the OCI Console.
  • Basic understanding of OCI concepts (Compartments, VCNs, Subnets).
• Load Balancer Virtual Appliance:
  • A load balancer image available as:
    • An OCI Marketplace image, or
    • A custom image imported as a QCOW2 or OCI-compatible image.
• Resources:
  • Appropriate compute shape (OCPU, memory, and network bandwidth).
  • Block storage volumes if required.
• Networking:
  • An existing Virtual Cloud Network (VCN).
  • Public and/or private subnets.
  • Static private IP address for management.
  • Optional public IP for frontend or management access.
• Permissions:
  • IAM policies allowing management of compute, networking, and storage resources.

Step 1: Access the Oracle Cloud Environment #

1. Log in to the OCI Console.
2. Select the appropriate Region.
3. Choose the target Compartment.

Step 2: Create a Compute Instance #

1. Navigate to Compute > Instances.
2. Click Create Instance.
3. Select the load balancer image from:
   • OCI Marketplace, or
   • Custom image repository

Step 3: Configure Instance Details #

1. Provide an instance name (e.g., LB-OCI-01).
2. Select the availability domain.
3. Choose the compute shape based on throughput and performance needs.
4. Configure SSH keys or credentials.
5. Click Next.

Step 4: Configure Networking #

1. Select the target VCN.
2. Choose the appropriate subnet (public or private).
3. Assign a private IP address (static recommended).
4. Optionally assign a public IP address.
5. Ensure security lists and network security groups allow required ports.
6. Enable IP forwarding if required by the appliance.

Step 5: Configure Storage #

1. Review the boot volume size.
2. Add additional block volumes if required.
3. Configure backup policies if needed.

Step 6: Review and Launch #

1. Review all instance settings.
2. Click Create to launch the instance.

Step 7: Initial Configuration of the Load Balancer #

Access the Virtual Appliance #

1. Connect to the instance using SSH or HTTPS.
2. Verify assigned IP addresses.
3. Perform initial system updates if required.

Configure Basic Settings #

1. Set:
   • Hostname
   • Static IP configuration
   • DNS servers
   • Time zone and NTP
2. Apply and save changes.

Step 8: Configure Load Balancer Functionality #

Backend Pool Configuration #

1. Add backend server private IP addresses.
2. Define application ports and services.

Frontend Listener Configuration #

1. Create frontend listeners.
2. Bind listeners to private or public IP addresses.
3. Define protocols and ports.

Health Checks #

1. Configure TCP or HTTP(S) health checks.
2. Set intervals and failure thresholds.

SSL/TLS Settings (if applicable) #

1. Upload SSL/TLS certificates.
2. Configure termination or passthrough.

Load Balancing Algorithms #

1. Select the desired algorithm (Round Robin, Least Connections, Hash).
2. Save and activate the configuration.

Step 9: Cluster Deployment with Two Virtualized Nodes #

For production environments, deploy the virtual load balancer in a clustered configuration.

Cluster Architecture #

• Deploy two identical load balancer instances.
• Place instances in different Availability Domains or Fault Domains.
• Ensure identical network interfaces and configurations.

High Availability and Failover #

• Configure a floating Virtual IP (VIP).
• Use OCI route table updates or VRRP-like mechanisms.
• Ensure automatic failover between nodes.

State Synchronization #

• Enable session and configuration synchronization.
• Use a dedicated private subnet or interface for sync traffic.

Step 10: Security Architecture with IPDS and MFA #

Network-Level Security with IPDS #

• Inspect traffic for network-level attacks.
• Detect DDoS, port scans, and protocol misuse.
• Apply rate limiting and anomaly detection.

Application-Level Security #

• Protect applications from SQL injection, XSS, and malformed requests.
• Apply per-service security rules.
• Log and audit security events.

Authentication and Access Control with MFA #

• Enable MFA for administrative access.
• Integrate with IAM, LDAP, or RADIUS.
• Apply role-based access control (RBAC).

Step 11: Testing and Validation #

1. Verify connectivity to the management interface.
2. Access frontend services via the VIP.
3. Confirm load distribution across backend servers.
4. Simulate failover by stopping one node.
5. Review logs and health check results.

Step 12: Backup and Monitoring #

1. Create boot volume and block volume backups.
2. Schedule configuration exports.
3. Integrate with OCI Monitoring, Logging, and external SIEM platforms.

By following these steps, you can deploy a secure, highly available, and enterprise-ready virtual load balancer architecture in Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, fully aligned with cloud and security best practices.